


Elliott's True Gift

by PrincessAmisi



Category: Biker Mice From Mars
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-12
Updated: 2018-06-12
Packaged: 2019-05-21 07:43:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 18,010
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14911226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PrincessAmisi/pseuds/PrincessAmisi





	Elliott's True Gift

**On a cold wintry day in late December shortly after the first snow storm of the season ripped through, deep in a dark forest inside an old Victorian style home, Elliott Sandstone lay soundly sleeping in a spacious bed underneath a warm winter quilt that was spread over the bed inside a door-less room that he had been thrown into six years ago when his dreams flashed to how he'd wound up in the position he was in.**  
  
**Then he remembered, he'd been working with Austin in the med ward study room to catch up on her missed homework that needed immediate attention, Melinda had gone home earlier that evening until she was needed when a distress call came over the radio from someone needing help in the badlands of Mars.**  
  
**After getting no more than ten questions into her assigned math worksheet bundle, Austin felt the irritating tickle in the very back of her throat flare up again and started coughing uncontrollably causing Elliott to make the decision to give her a new cough syrup that had just come in to settle the tickle in her throat,a new bronchitis medication to stabilize her breathing enough to get her breath back, start her on a round of antibiotics to fight the infection that was starting to develop in her throat and a decongestant cough syrup to clear out the congestion in her chest.**  
  
**Once he had everything he needed to get Austin healthy again, he decided to take Austin back home where Hailley was getting lunch ready,take her straight up to her room, get her back into bed and started on the first dose of her medication before he had to return to the med ward to tend to the call that needed his attention.**  
  
**Swiftly jotting a note to Melinda who would be coming back on shift that he had responded to an emergency call from someone in the forest, catching a ride from his brother in law Ethan who also had heard the call and had a bad feeling about the legitimacy, he gave him the directions to the location of the distress call then told him to carry on and he'd call when his job there was done.**  
  
**Halfway up the path, far out of sight from the roadway, he was hit in the back with a large tranquilizer dart containing a large amount of tranquillizer that knocked him out cold.  
**  
**When he awoke, he realized that somehow he'd been transported to earth and found himself locked in a room that appeared to be door-less wearing unfamiliar clothes and shoes and decided that the buzzing in his head wasn't going to go away unless he went to sleep and tried to sleep it off.**  
  
**Elliott slowly wakes to a freezing cold blast of air and thinks:** Did I not shut that door last night? I'm a hundred percent sure I shut that sliding glass door before I went to bed last night! **(Shivers thinking)** Why is the air blowing in so cold?! **(Sits up, pushes back the blankets and slips out of bed then swings his body around, stands up heading towards the window, sees white stuff on the carpet and thinks)** What in the world is this stuff on the carpet? What in the world is going on outside that's making this weird powder accumulate on the carpet? **(Moves the curtain aside to see nothing but a wall of white outside and notices the inner glass door was open and thinks)** Guess I was wrong, I didn't shut and lock this door last night. What in the wide world is going on? Is this what Hailley calls a blizzard? What happened to everything outside? It's a wall of white **(notices a break in the blowing snow and thinks in sheer awe)** This HAS to be a blizzard! There are brief periods of sight but it's so COLD outside and the wind is really howling. Well, I best shut this door and go back to be and back to sleep while I still have the opportunity to get back to sleep. Well here's to hoping that whatever the girls were battling before I disappeared has cleared up and that medication I started them on worked. ( **Goes back to sleep and slips into peaceful dreams until he's awakened by the voice over the intercom)**  
  
_**Voice over the intercom:** Rise and shine ya louse! An hour and thirty-five minutes before yer mornin feedin! You'll never guess what's for breakfast today!_  
  
**Elliott awakens and groans saying:** Ohh, what time is it? **(Checks his alarm clock to see it was only six a.m. and says)** Six a.m. already? It was only two a.m. a few minutes ago. **(Groans and feels queasy saying)** Soggy brown rice mixed with milk and oatmeal with unsanitary water. An hour and thirty-five minutes to shower? I don't need that much time!  
  
**Voice over the intercom:** Soggy brown rice mixed with milk and oatmeal with unsanitary water! **(Chuckles and says)** Enjoy yer meal, it just might be yer last one on this side of the border between life and death. **(Intercom goes dead with one last hiss of static)**  
  
**Elliott groans in pain as his shock collar gives him the morning jolt of electricity then hears the door sliding back into place, gets up out of bed, goes over to the chair to pick up his towel and heads into the washroom for a quick shower to rinse the night's sweat out of his hair and fur then once he was dressed in the clothes that were hanging on the back of the bathroom door and put on the shoes that sat on the shoe rack behind the door he came back out and walked over to the windows,opened the curtains and unlocked the sliding glass door to let some fresh air in then headed over to the ledge where the tray was and picks it up and walks back to his bed, removes the lid and starts to eat thinking:** _Hmm, mmm, I haven't eaten this much food in the six years I've been trapped in this house! Hmm, mm this is delicious! A nice sized breakfast for me to fill up my empty stomach. Someone must've known what I've been yearning for!_ **(Continues eating his breakfast until everything on all the plates was gone and he was finishing off his hot tea, saving his hot chocolate for after he'd digested his big breakfast.)**  
  
**A few minutes later, feeling drowsy from the effects of his full stomach, Elliott sat the tray on the nightstand beside his bed and laid down to take a nap.  
**  
**What felt like two hours later but was really forty-five minutes after he'd eaten, a tapping at the sliding French doors caught his attention causing Elliott to almost fell off of the bed when he saw Hailley on the other side.**  
  
**Elliott gets off of the bed in a hurry and darts over to the French doors, unlocked them and slid them back allowing Hailley to step into his warm open arms as he said after giving her the kiss of her life:** Hailley?! What're you doing here? How did you find me? My love! Are you alright? You're not hurt, are you?  
  
**Hailley nestles further into Elliott's arms, lays her honey blond head on his heart and sighs contentedly says:** No, I'm not hurt. I'm perfectly fine. I came to give you some clean clothes, toiletries, socks, and boots. Badge told me he dropped you off here six years ago then never seen or heard from you since, but from the calendar in the room next door, I gather time inside has gone backward because it's dated for twenty-five years ago. **(Notices a shock collar tightly fastened around his neck with a dog tag with his new name and new rank inscribed on it and strange clothing and shoes then says)** What're they doing to you?! No one should have to wear a shock collar around their neck, especially not you! What've they done with your med ward clothes?! A red sailor collared shirt with a green tie? You look more like the ones you're training, not their teacher! **(Starts to feel tired from her long-ignored fever and says)** I've gotta go before they see me! I've evaded the security camera's and burglar alarm systems.  
  
**Elliott:** TWENTY FIVE YEARS AGO?! I knew time was behaving strangely inside this house but I NEVER thought they'd take time back THAT far! No wonder I feel so much younger than I did before coming here! I've been wondering why I've been so much lighter and faster on my feet than I was before, even my decision making skills are sharper than they were before I wound up here. Even my thought process is clearer than it was before. As for my clothes, I have no idea where my other clothes are! I woke up dressed in these clothes, they're easy to move in but I prefer my med ward clothes and boots, but they won't tell me where they hid them, so I'm stuck wearing these running shoes, jeans and sailor shirt. They stripped me of my wallet, security clearance card and credentials while I was out cold, so I have nothing on me. I tried to get away from here three years ago by slipping out this door, I got as far as the tree before they caught up to me, dragged me back inside, then they put this collar on me and this is their way of keeping me in check. I came so close to freedom all that was between me and getting away from here was fifteen feet and I'd have been home sooner! I can't step foot outside of where I'm standing right now or I'll get shocked. I've been here that long? I don't have any means of keeping track of the dates or years as you can see the only thing they've given me was a small amount of books and an alarm clock. It feels as though time is going backwards in here where time outside is progressing at a normal rate. I don't have a calendar and heaven only knows, one day they might opt to take the clock from me. My lab coat! You haven't found my lab coat have you? I woke up without it on. I'm also missing one from the Med ward, the one I've been searching for at the time was taken right off the back of the chair where I leave it when I go on break. My black bag is gone as well! I didn't have it when I woke up and I've searched this entire room for it to no avail! Teddy and Sierra were sick when I last had seen them, infected strep throats, chest infections, bronchial infections and Austin had an irritating tickle in her throat. I gave her a decongestant and three weeks of antibiotics hoping to be back to do a more thorough exam and some chest x-rays then proceed from there. I hadn't anticipated being kept here for so long. Teddy and Sierra were on strong antibiotics for their infections along with extra strength cough syrup to settle the cough, Helixia I think is what I started them on. How's Sierra's research coming along? I need to know what happened to Racer, his band and entourage! A band the size of Racer's band doesn't up and vanish into thin air!  
  
**Hailley:** Yeah uh, Cobalt from North Point called back, Sierra lives with him and Hunter taking care of their kids. Cobalt being the genius he is at uncorrupting corrupted files, managed to uncorrupt a huge file on the flash drive and it clearly says that Racer's bus was targeted by the Plutarkians. The entire band was taken prisoner and taken to a secluded prison somewhere deep inside Phobos.  
  
**Elliott heaves a sigh and says:** Then that means that Teddy, Austin and Teagan were conceived, born and raised in the prison world! What I don't understand is how the girls came to be on base alone.  
  
**Hailley:** No, the girls were made, born and raised on the road, they were aboard Racers bus when the stink fish trapped them. They were partially raised in prison until they were smuggled out by Racer's lead drummer who has his Masters Degree in Engineering and managed to make a child sized hole in the wall of their prison cell and gave them over to whoever was waiting on the other side of the wall to bring to us to look after until the day Racer's band is found and freed.  
  
**Elliott:** So no one knows of he's alive or not.. Not what I was hoping to hear. I had at least hoped that I would hear he was alright.  
  
**Hailley:** I know but Cobalt's working on it along with Sierra and a team of computer programmers to decorrupt the rest of the file. By the time your freed and return home, the remainder of the file will have been decorrupted, debugged and made ready to read. I've been ensuring they get their medications and stay away from their friends and school until they're better and they're still taking the medication you gave them with stuff I gave them. There's a magic-cal in your satchel to help keep track of time, there's no need to keep it hidden, to non-magic users it appears to be a normal photo in a normal picture frame with a family picture in it, to those exposed to crystalline magic it's a calendar. Sora gave them six weeks worth of antibiotics for their colds and strict instructions stay home away from their friends in bed. Sierra hung it up on the coat rack after she found it on the floor. Your black bag's gone? I'll see if the boys on the search team have picked it up when I get home. Your weight loss, energy gain, clear and fast thinking aren't because time in this house has gone backwards forty-five years, it's because a lot of the junk food that was normally available in the first two years is no longer being served, your spare tire is gone, your weight has leveled off, all that spare weight you were carrying around made you heavy, clunky, slow and awkward as well as making your clothing size go up. You're the one preaching to the kids to eat well and not overindulge in things that aren't good for you, yet at the same time how many of Pierre's Baking Students Open Houses have you gone to where you ate more than you knew you should have? It could also be that you're getting caught up on lost sleep which your body is craving and thanking you for with more energy, clearer thinking, and quicker speeds.  
  
**Elliott heaves a sigh and says:** Oh thank the stars! I never thought to look at the coat rack in the corner to see if it was there! How many baking open houses have I been to where I've gorged? Oh geeze, I don't know really. Seven or eight of 'em, I guess sometimes I don't keep track of what and how much I was eating and my weight got away from me. Someone's been slipping me cupcakes, cookies, cakes and little goodies. Strangely though they're not as sugary or fattening as they normally taste. I never connected the amount of sleep I've been catching up on with how much weight I've lost, my quicker, clearer thought processes and my faster speed. **(Picks up on the fever Hailley was attempting to hide from him and says)** What the hell are you doing up out of bed in your condition?! Are you aiming to be in the med ward battling this fever? That's where you'll end up if you don't go home and rest! You're overdoing it!  
  
**Hailley heaves a sigh and says:** No I'm not aiming for the ICU Ward. That's because the black shadows have been ensuring you get enough to eat and the 'sweet' treats have been made with a sugar substitute. I'd have brought it with me if I did. No, I haven't found your med ward jacket. As for your wallet, security clearance card and credentials **(Reaches into her jacket pocket and pulls out Elliott's security clearance card wallet and credentials saying)** Rusty gave these to me to keep on the third day of the search for you.  
  
**Elliott nods and takes the satchel from Hailley's hands, tosses it over on to his bed then closes Hailley's hand over his security clearance card wallet, and credentials saying:** No, I've no use for them here. You keep them until I'm freed, I'm just relieved that someone I trust has found them!  
  
**Hailley:** Willow's on the road more than she's home and I'm not entirely sure I like it, Elliott! Willow's still a minor child out on the road instead of having a normal childhood, she's posing for promotional posters, doing interviews and commercials.  
  
**Elliott:** I don't like it either, I want her home as much as you do. However, she has a contract in place I'm still going over. This is her last tour then she's staying home until she's older.  
  
**Hailley:** I want her home until at least sixteen!  
  
**Elliott heaves a sigh and says:** So do I, she's too young right now to be out on the road on lengthy tours!  
  
**Hailley:** So, there is news  
  
**Elliott:** Enlighten me I have no idea what's going on  
  
**Hailley:** Domino's put his foot down and brought Willow home early stating the Promotion and Legal Departments had no business signing a then six-year-old to a contract without him knowing or parental approval.  
  
**Elliott heaves a sigh of relief saying:** Someone listened to me and brought Willow home!  
  
**Hailley:** Yes, he called me on day two stating he was bringing Willow back home and come get her from the hangar. She was there with Sierra waiting for me to pick her up so  
Sierra could go back out on the road for the last fourteen stops in Onyx Town for her concert. Then off to Sapphire Town for the start of her book signing tour.  
  
**Elliott:** You went and picked Willow up from the hangar? I missed that call due to being with a patient.  
  
**Hailley:** Of COURSE I went and got her. I took her home, ran her a cool bath for her fever, let her float awhile then got her out, dried off, into her night clothes and into bed giving Willow her nighttime medication.  
  
**Elliott rubs his forehead and says:** How high was her fever when you got her home?  
  
**Hailley puts Elliott's security clearance card wallet, and credentials back in her jacket pocket and says:** Barely sitting at a hundred, it came down a few degrees after her cool bath. The new bronchitis medication you gave Austin's working better than the old stuff did. She hasn't had an attack since she's started using the new stuff. The infection? It's not wanting to go, what's the next step? I repeated all the previous labs and it's showing no signs of going away any time soon.  
  
**Elliott heaves a sigh and rubs the back of his neck then says:** Not what I was hoping to hear. Could be round two or three of the virus that's sweeping through the grade school division. Good! It's an anti-inflammatory bronchodilator medication that works fast. In the very back of the medicine closet, there's a powerful antibiotic that I rarely use because the person taking it needs to be monitored every three days to ensure nothing goes wrong. Put Willow on a multi-vitamin when you get back. **(While holding her small sandy brown furred well-manicured hands in his, he picks up on sick vibes and lays his skilled hand under her bangs on to her forehead to feel the heat from a fever he says)** You're running a fever and I can tell you're not as strong as you'd like to be! What in the hell do you think you're doing up out of bed? Are you aiming to be a patient in the ICU of the med ward hooked up to a respirator to help you breathe and IV's in your arm allowing medication into your system through your veins?! I sure the hell don't want to see you in a bed in that condition nor do the little kids who will be starting first grade in the next term.  
  
**Hailley:** I just couldn't stand to be cooped up all day! I felt fine when I woke up this morning. I've been in bed for three days straight! I'm sick of being in bed!  
  
**Elliott gently grips Hailley's upper arm with one hand then tips her chin to look at him saying:** Regardless of whether or not you're sick of being in bed, that's where you should be when you're running a fever! Go home and straight to bed! I mean it! You're overexerting yourself by ignoring your fever! Now go on! You ought to know better! Practice what you preach, you tell your Pediatric patients to stay home in bed when they're sick, the doctor should follow her own advice! PROMISE ME you'll NEVER to pull this stunt alone again! It's far too dangerous for you!  
  
**Hailley takes a deep breath and unable to avoid Elliott's eyes she says:** I promise never to pull this stunt alone ever again. Though River is outside in the thick bushes hiding and waiting for me, I'm not really here on my own. I know, I know, I should start listening to myself.  
  
**Elliott hears someone coming down the hall towards his door and says:** Hailley my love, you've gotta go! They'll kill you if they find you here! Please, be careful. Don't leave any tracks in the snow or they'll track you down!  
  
**Hailley hearing the fear building in Elliott's voice and the rapidly approaching footsteps coming towards his door says:** I'll go. Tracks in the snow?! Do you see any tracks in the snow?! Someone's shoveled a path to these doors that I used, too bad they didn't remember to throw down some rock salt to keep the slush from refreezing and becoming ice. But at least I have rubber gripping soled winter boots on my feet so I won't fall and get hurt.  
  
**Elliott:** Please go home and start focusing on your own health! Now go! Before they get you too! I don't want you here, this isn't where you belong! **(Pulls Hailley close to him for one last hug and kiss he tearfully let linger before allowing Hailley to finally leave)**  
  
**Hailley gets one last tight hug and lingering kiss from her husband then turns and fades into a bright patch of sunlight that made it seem like she was never there.**  
**Shutting and locking the screen door, Elliott turned his attention to the satchel Hailley had brought him and began unpacking it.**

  
**12:00 p.m.**

  
**The door once again was opened and another tray was set on the serving sideboard with plates that were piled up with all his favorite foods and a note hidden amongst cookies from his unknown food provider.**  
  
**Elliott gets up off his bed, goes over to the sideboard, picks up his tray, takes it back over to his bed, sits it on the folding tray, removes the lid, starts eating his lunch and spies a piece of familiar stationary, picks up then reads the note thinking:** _MMM! Someone's finally coming to free me!_ **(Recognizes the handwriting and thinks)** _It's familiar handwriting and it says to do everything they say to do and when the night's a second away from becoming morning, River and some others are coming to rescue me! Oh, thank ares someone knows where I am other than Hailley!_ **(Hears the voice again stating he had twenty five minutes to brush his teeth and rinse his mouth before they came to interrogate him over and over again until he broke down in tears pleading for them to let him go home, gets up after finishing his meal, goes into the bathroom, turns the faucet on, opens the medicine cabinet, pull out his plax, mouth wash, tooth brush, tooth paste, closes the door and sticks his toothbrush under the running water then squeezes tooth paste onto it and began brushing his teeth after he was done, he went and waited by the door.)**  
  
**Before he's guided down the hall and down a few stairs, a guard yanks a blindfold over his eyes to keep him in the dark then Elliott is roughly shoved down the hall,down a few short stairs,into the dark den where he is shoved in front of a wider back chair then pushed down then firmly and tightly bound to a wider backed chair than the one he'd been sitting in every afternoon for the last six years after which his blindfold was removed.**

  
**IN THE DARK DEN**

  
**Leon sees Elliott is firmly bound to the new torture chair and says:** Alright then before we begin **(presses the button unleashing a painful amount of electricity through the collar on Elliott's neck saying)** How stupid do you think I am?! Did you HONESTLY think no one would know about your visitor? Or about you unlocking the sliding glass doors in the room you're in? Did you think that I wouldn't put hidden camera's in the walls to keep an eye on you?!  
  
**Elliott feels the intense pain of extra volts of electricity as they shocked causing him intense pain and to nearly black out as he begged:** Please stop! PLEASE! I'M BEGGING YOU! STOP! IT HURTS TOO MUCH! **(Feels as the electricity increased three more times as the collar began tightening around his windpipe and begs) Please stop! PLEASE! I'M BEGGING YOU! STOP! I CAN SCARCELY BREATHE! PLEASE STOP! (Finally feels as the electricity stops flowing and the pressure from the collar eases off allowing air to get in and lurches forward stopped only by the fact his wrists were tied to the back of the chair and says in an exhausted voice)** Thank Ares, oh that hurt. Please, I'm sorry! It'll never happen again! You're upset over a dog visiting me? THAT was my visitor, a stray dog from down the lane often comes by for a visit?  
  
**Leon releases the button saying:** A dog? A STRAY DOG? THAT WAS THE BLASTED VISITOR?! It better not happen again or else you'll get worse than what you just got now! **(Walks over to Elliott, tips his head back forcing him to look up and says)** I've got you where I've wanted you for years, you're MY servant now. Though time outside has gone on as normal for the last six years, inside this house, time will be going backwards until I get you to a certain point in time when you are most susceptible to being controlled and for once that wretched king's guard of time isn't around to put a stop to what I'm doing. I've traveled too far ahead in time for either of them to stop me! You misbehave once more and you'll never see the light of day again, I'll lock you in that one place no one will find you! Do you understand me now?  
  
**Elliott swallows his building fear and says in a breathless voice:** Y-Yes I understand! Please don't send me there again! The first time was bad enough! Two years in that room were terrifying! It won't happen again! I swear! I-I'll behave better from now on! You have my word and my honor that I'll behave better from now on! Yes, every day for the last six years the same cat from down the lane stops by to visit. I usually just give it a bowl of water and a dish of tuna or salmon. It's just a stray dog that's taken a liking to me and allows me to pet it every great once in awhile. That's the only visitor I've gotten.  
  
**Leon releases Elliott's chin saying:** You'd better start behaving yourself from now on! Take him back to his new room in eight hours! **(Notices something reflecting what little light was in the den on Elliott's third right finger and says)** Nice bling, looks expensive! Could fetch a mighty penny.  
  
**Elliott jerks his head up and cries:** My engagement and wedding bands? No! You wouldn't think of taking them off, would you? They're all I have left of my previous life! Please don't take them off! You wouldn't get anything for them, they're engraved and insured! Anyone who buys these off the black market would be prosecuted for grand theft. NEW ROOM?! EIGHT HOURS?  
  
**Leon:** I don't tamper with sacred items and wedding rings are the tippy top of the no tamper list, they're sacred. I don't need to pawn other people's gold jewelry. **(Notices a heart-shaped lump under Elliott's shirt, leans forward, reaches out, hooks his finger under a hidden chain and pulls out a locket saying)** What's this we have hidden? **(reads the inscription saying)** Married to special ladies named Austin,Teddy, Teagan, Taylor,Toby,Rory,Maddie and Willow? Are we a Polygamist?  
  
**Elliott:** N-no!  
  
**Leon snaps open the locket then snaps it shut allowing it to swing back against Elliott's shirt saying:** Pah! It's just a bunch of kids! What relation are they to you?  
  
**Elliott chokes back his building sobs and says:** Austin,Teddy and Teagan are my eldest nieces, Taylor,Rory and Toby are my eldest daughters and Willow and Maddie are my youngest daughters.  
  
**Leon hears the side door doorbell ring, grabs the gag off the table, walks over to Elliott where he swiftly and tightly ties the gag over his mouth and around the back of the chair saying:** Not a sound out of you! I'll be back in a few minutes! **(Grabs his wallet from the drawer of the table beside the window then disappears out the sliding glass doors behind him to greet the person ringing the bell saying)** So sorry to keep you waiting! There's a delay from the moment you push the bell to when it chimes in the study. What can I do for you?  
  
**Sera holds up a box of cookies saying:** Care to buy a box of cookies to help my school rebuild the gym that was destroyed in a fire?  
  
**Leon:** Hmm I'll take all the cases you've got in your wagon. They're what? Twenty-five a case? There's what? Twelve cases in your wagon? So that's three hundred on the dot?  
  
**Sera:** Actually, they're fifty a case. So that's six hundred for all twelve cases  
  
**Leon leans back in to pull a cord calling his help saying to the newly arrived help:** Empty out that wagon, they've all been paid for.  
  
**Sera notices a glint of gold from behind the curtain of the study waits until Leon and his helpers were occupied emptying her wagon saying into the hidden ear piece's mic she'd pulled out from under her hair:** He's here, in the study.  
  
_**Diesel:** Great, is he alright?_  
  
**Sera:** I have no idea. Your best bet would be to get Bandit or Storm to go inside and find out. No one will know they're there as they blend in with the shadows.  
  
_**Diesel:** You got it! How's the phony story about selling cookies to rebuild a non-existent school's gym going?_  
  
**Sera chuckles and says:** He bought it lock stock and barrel. Bought the entire shipment of sedative-laced cookies from me. See if you can bring me another wagon with the latest batch of sedative-laced stuff  
  
_**Diesel:** Not a problem! When his goons take the last case out of the wagon, Chester's waiting behind the tree with another wagon full of stuff and a costume change for you!_  
  
**Sera:** Whoops gotta go, they're back for the last two cases  
  
_**Diesel:** Roger that, keep in touch!_  
  
**Sera:** I will. I hate to even ask but I will. Did anyone even think to inform our dads of what's going on?  
  
_**Diesel:** Uhhh_  
  
**Sera heaves a sigh saying:** Oooh boy are Bandit, Storm and I ever in trouble when we get home! Did you forget Bandit and I were already grounded for two months because of the last mission we were recruited for when uncle BLIZZARD found out about, told our dad and oh yeah we got grounded for two months? Just how do you think we're going to explain this to him? It's not like we can go home and lay it out on the line to our mother, we don't have a mother! She died when Bandit and I were ten and Scooter was three months old! Dad's pretty tight with the rules and you of all people should have known that. Uncle Blizzard's even tighter and harder on Storm because of Whitney and Thunder. Whitney and Thunder come up with beautifully woven stories about how Storm beats them up and constantly forgets to pick up Thunder from Daycare or Whitney from where ever she ends up and he gets grounded indefinitely.  
  
_**Diesel heaves a sigh and says:** I'll deal with your dads when we get back or I'll let Carbine deal with them as she's the one who drafted you, your brother and cousin for this mission against their wishes to keep you out of things._  
  
**Sera:** By the way what's the name of this fictitious school of yours? He's going to ask. Is this costume change less frilly?!  
  
_**Diesel flips through the pages of the script for the mission and says:** Oh boy, whoever came up with this mission didn't give me one. Let's just use the boarding school I remember my sister being sent off to because she wouldn't behave herself: St.Basil's Private Boarding Academy located in the country. Why are you asking me?! I didn't pick the clothes! Wish I had! I'd have done a better job of picking costumes out! Turn your barrette off before you're found out! (Shuts off the link and sends Bandit to the house with instructions to ensure Elliott was alright)_  
  
**Sera turns off her barrette and slips the mic under her hair saying:** That's six hundred for all twelve cases!  
  
**Leon gives Sera six hundred dollars saying:** Glad I could help uhh what's the name of the school?  
  
**Sera:** St.Basil's Private Boarding Academy located in the country from Nursery School to Twelfth grade all in one school.  
  
**Leon:** Right, glad I could help out St.Basil's Private Boarding Academy in rebuilding their gym. (Steps backward into the den saying) Have a nice day.  
  
**Sera watches as Leon disappeared into the den then pulls out the mic and says:** Bandit get your ass out of there! He's on his way back inside!  
  
**Bandit:** I'm on my way out the window right now. Elliott is fine, he's longing to go home but I told him to bear with us a while longer until Trey has everything ready on his end.  
  
**Sera grabs the handle of the wagon and runs towards the huge tree on the right side of the property where she greets Chester saying:** Ready for a costume change and a reload!  
  
**Chester pulls forward a wagon of wafers and chocolate bars saying:** One more wagon of chocolate sedative-laced goodies and **(hands Sera the bag of clothes saying)** a costume change! **(Notices Bandit up the tree and says)** How is he?  
  
**Bandit drops down out of the tree saying:** Severely home, family and career sick. They're forcefully training him to learn a whole new career and abandon everything he's worked for. He's come to associate his Medical Knowledge with severe shocks from the collar they have around his neck and the bracelets around his wrists. They're also training him to learn a new name: Brad and a new profession: Baker. Each time he uses his Medical Skills, he gets shocks from the collar around his neck and the bracelets around his wrists. I'm beginning to wonder how he'll manage going back to being Morning Star base's Doctor and Scientist when he's getting shocks when he uses those skills here. Maybe Storm and I should do this one Sera. That way dad won't flip out on you, I mean we're in enough trouble as it is with him. If he finds out we're doing this  
  
**Sera comes out from behind the bush in a new outfit saying:** He'll really kill us.  
  
**Chester:** Not if this last con goes smoothly and we get you two home, back into your bedrooms before your dad gets home from work to check on you!  
  
**Bandit takes a deep breath and sighs saying:** You'd better start hoping and praying we get home before dad does. You don't want to be on the receiving end of his temper the way Sera and I already have. Little Scooter is manipulative and can manipulate our dad into believing her faster than you can convince him we were home all weekend.  
  
**Chester:** Damned! I'd forgotten about Scooter's ability to manipulate people! Is she a tattletale?  
  
**Bandit:** Hells yes. You give her money and she'll run right to dad and tell him uncle Chester gave her hush money to keep our whereabouts a secret, then she'll blab to dad that we weren't in our bedrooms all weekend and he'll triple the grounding maybe even quadruple the grounding. Oi, four months in our rooms only out for school, after-school activities and work and that's it. Nothing on weekends unless either one of us has to work.  
  
**Chester:** Sera, who do you work for?  
  
**Sera:** I waitress at Pierre and Madeline's little Cafe just off the Butterfly Inn and before you even go there, the answer is no. Neither Pierre and Madeline will lie for you. They want nothing to do with what's going on. Matter of fact **(heaves a sigh and says)** I was given an hour-long lecture about trying to get either one of them involved with lies and was clearly told that if it were to happen, then they'd let me go regardless of how hard I work and my work ethic. They want nothing to do with lying to my dad period end of story. I lobbied long and hard to get that job and I'm not about to risk losing it by saying Pierre and Madeline knew what was going on when they don't have a clue. I don't like causing trouble where there isn't any trouble, besides the point, both Pierre and Madeline have been really good to me and I haven't caused any problems for either of them and I intend on keeping it that way for a very long time! I'm on the road to a bigger paycheck and a promotion to head waitress because of my good behavior and the fact that I haven't gotten a single disciplinary mark from either one of them. I want to keep it that way, I don't want to lose Pierre and Madeline's respect for me by screwing up.  
  
**Chester heaves a sigh and rubs his eyes saying:** Well then, I do hope boss lady has the where with all to stand up to your fathers on this one as it was her idea to include you three on this mission. I'll call her when we get back to base camp. Bandit you and Storm are up for this one, Sera you can sit it out or go with the boys.  
  
**Sera heaves a sigh, grabs the wagon handle and says:** You boys want to do this one? Go for it. Storm your the Boy's Lacrosse Team Assistant Captain and Bandit you're the Team Captain, you're raising money to secure a bus to get to Kentucky for the last leg of your Lacrosse tournament. (Opens a box and pulls out the two Lacrosse jerseys she'd found in her dad's stuff saying) Here try these on and see if they fit you.  
  
**Bandit pulls on his dad's old Lacrosse jersey over his old school uniform saying:** Fits me I must be the same body size as dad was when he was my age.  
  
**Storm:** I must be the same size my dad was back in the day! You look like your old man and look like mine!  
  
**Sera heaves a sigh and says:** You're both simpletons. Dad and uncle Blizzard are BROTHERS from the same PARENTS. Oh boy, I give up. Our grandparents are dad and uncle Blizzard's PARENTS are we following me or do I have to really dumb it down?  
  
**Storm:** No, I got the hint a long time ago. My mom and your late mom were best friends growing up. My mom tells me about it all the time. Wait! That's it! Talk to my mom! She's more open and willing to listen than my dad is! My mom always says that dad's a brick wall, he doesn't bend or move when he gets to a decision. Mom is like the branches of a tree, she bends and sways and is always willing to sit and listen then form an opinion unlike dad. It's Whitney and Thunder you have to dumb it down for, they don't understand my dad and your dad are brothers. Give me the wagon so we can get this show on the road. I take it you're on the Girls Lacrosse Team with that outfit.  
  
**Seira:** Yep now I just have to change my hair color so he doesn't recognize me from earlier! (Digs into the box and pulls out a black wig saying)Well, not my ideal color but it'll do! **(begins to wind her hair up into flat curls until it was all hidden then allows Chester to pin the black wig on top saying)** Well, how do I look?  
  
**Bandit pulls out his wallet and pulls out a photo of their mother saying:** Like mother at this age!  
  
**Chester:** Oh my gosh, you do look like your mother! Except, Abbi wore glasses, she supposedly had such terrible sight that the school forced her to go get her eyes checked at the start of every year insisting she had terrible vision. Turned out she had terrible reading vision. She needed glasses to read and nothing else. Now, do you remember your script and why you're selling this stuff?  
  
**Sera:** The girls Lacrosse Team is heading to Wisconsin for our National Championship Tournament. I need to sell twenty-two hundred dollars worth of merchandise to pay for my hotel and food expenses as well as the double-decker air-conditioned coach. I've managed to raise sixteen hundred leaving me four hundred dollars short for the trip  
  
**Storm:** The boys Lacrosse Team is heading to Kentucky for the last leg of our Quarter Semi-Finals and we need to sell at least seventeen hundred in merch. Thus far we've sold fifteen hundred, we need two hundred dollars more to be able to secure the double-decker air-conditioned coach for the trip.  
  
**Chester:** Good! Now go! **(Looks up to see Willow and says)** Wait a minute guys! What the bloody hell are you doing here in your condition? He'll kill us! He wouldn't want to even have an inkling you're on your feet without Hailley knowing!  
  
**Willow coughs sharply saying:** You don't know?  
  
**Austin comes up behind Willow saying:** Th-there you are! You know I can't run very fast right now! As it is, my chest is killing me from this cold you gave me!  
  
**Chester:** Know what? Sorry, you've lost me. I scarcely even know Elliott except by his reputation back on base. I just moved to Morning Star Base a few weeks ago when this mission was dumped into my lap.  
  
**Diesel comes out of bushes saying:** Chester,Toby, Taylor, Maddie and Willow are Elliott's daughters. He's protective of them and would put himself in danger to keep them safe. Teddy,Austin, and Teagan are his nieces. It'd break his heart to know they're here and not home. Sierra's a guest in his house, she's just waiting for her employers to finish with their visit to their families with their children. She felt out of place at Cobalt's parents place and even more out of place at Hunter's parents place, like she just didn't belong at either residence so she took Elliott up on his offer to stay at his place until Hunter and Cobalt were ready to head back to North Point Base in a few more weeks. She got word they were extending their visit to their families to give them time to get to know their adoptive grandkids.  
  
**Austin:** Right now we're all more worried about uncle Elliott's health than our own health! uncle Elliott's seriously sick and hiding it, he's due to have surgery that will put him out for six to eight months just to correct a birth defect other Cardiologists refused to acknowledge.  
  
**Chester heaves a sigh saying:** Birth defect? Elliott's got a birth defect that's killing him?  
  
**Teddy comes up beside Austin and says:** His heart beats erratically without notice and if it's not fixed, it can and will kill him. My dad told us all about it and how the erratic heartbeat was missed by every single Cardiologist that ever put an ultrasound wand to his chest. Then again as grandpa always says: Every single Cardiologist that he was sent to was either blind or so near sighted they missed it. A few weeks after dad turned twenty two, a new Cardiologist moved to town took one look at dad's medical file, called grandma and grandpa and said get him to a hospital on Earth for immediate Cardiac Surgery to correct the erratic heartbeat. That's why he came here, to see the Cardiologist for one last check up and to go over labs. Unfortunately the Secretary screwed up, booked his appointment for six months from last December fifteenth and thankfully he's going to be able to see the Cardiologist literally as soon as we can get him out of that flipping house, relaxed,back on his medication and up-to-date on all his labs.  
  
**Chester:** Wait how are you going to get him up to date on his labs?!  
  
**Sierra:** Hello? What's my dad's career choice? He just needs one more lab to get done and there's no real rush to get it done. Elliott just needs to get his surgery date after he sees the Cardiologist. Once he gets the the appointment out of the way and gets a surgery date, then he's going to get the blood work done. It's how I did my gall surgery.  
  
**Chester:** Oh right right. Wait you had your gallbladder removed?! WHEN?  
  
**Sierra:** Last May, Mike Baitmore did it. I had a gall attack in the Hospital's Waiting Room and Mike was walking in from his lunch just in time to witness a monster gall attack that caused me to black out all the while other doctors and nurses just walked on by me irritated that I was doubled over in pain. One went as far as to give me directions to the Methadone Clinic because she thought I was a Meth Addict going through painful withdrawal symptoms. To say Mike was pissed is like saying Hurricanes are nothing more than an over blown thunderstorm. He got me into a room on the fourth floor,had an ultrasound machine brought in,got a good look at my gall bladder to see what was going on,once he seen that my gall bladder was inflamed and damned near ready to burst, he booked the OR for emergency surgery,got his team together and a couple hours later I was on the OR Table and out like a light for a good eight hours. After that I was in recovery where I woke up, carefully got out of bed with a Nurse present to assist me to and from the bathroom to ensure I was alright. I spent a good two months in the hospital recovering while Mike ripped the receptionist for the doctor who was supposed to do my gall bladder removal surgery laparoscopically a new one for forgetting to inform the doctor that I was in the waiting room of the hospital in sheer agony. Then he turned around and told the doctor who was going to do the surgery about what happened and brought him up to speed with the surgery and my recovery and little miss airhead receptionist went bye bye and was replaced with someone who actually gave a fig. After I was discharged and went home for awhile, the new receptionist called with a follow up appointment time for the next day. The next day I showed up still feeling like I had a damned boulder in my abdomen and out comes the receptionist with a wheelchair saying 'Honey you shouldn't be doing so much walking right now. I'll wheel you back to the room so you don't have to walk.'  
  
**Chester:** Good grief, you had a full on gall attack and doctors and nurses assume you're a meth addict? Great, remind me never to have a gall bladder attack anytime soon. Alright, we'll abandon selling more sedative-laced chocolates and go for a group of sick teens needing emergency medical attention. Can you make it to the side door on your own?  
  
**Teddy:** That's the beauty of this, we can make it to the side yard table and that's as far as our strength can take us. The rest is up to you two to get us all inside without dad knowing we're there. It'd be best if the little kids didn't get involved, they're on medication that needs mom to administer and ensure they get it, whereas us four older kids can handle ourselves no problem.  
  
**Diesel:** Then that's what we'll do. Except you seven stay here, Chester and I'll do this one ourselves. I'll have to call in one more to make this more believable. (Pulls out his cell phone and calls Breakshaft saying) Bring the backup plan gear and yourself, change of plans.

  
**Five minutes later**

  
**Breakshaft shows up with the backup plan's hiking gear for three saying:** I had a feeling something like this would've made more sense than asking the same guy for more money for phony Lacrosse teams going to phony championship games lacking funding. **(Hands the girls their school packs then hefts his up onto his back saying)** Well then, shall we get going and wear these two out further? You three back to the camper, Corbin's already thoroughly explained the situation to both your parents and explained you were commandeered by Carbine and not given a choice. Right now as unimpressed as both of your dads are, they've backed down and stopped issuing punishment threats. Take these four young ones with you! They don't need to be here! **(Watches as the five teens headed back to the camper with the four little girls before saying)** Shall we get going and get this show on the road before it's too late?  
Meanwhile back in the study  
  
**Leon:** Now where were we before we were interrupted? Oh yes, a new room in eight hours! It's not ready for you yet! How can I send you back to your old one when you've tried so many times to escape from it? It has sliding glass doors, this one will have a nice big picture window with four medium-sized windows you can open for air. Which brings me around to your training! **(Picks up the folder and says)** You've progressed faster than anticipated Brad. Pretty soon we'll have your memory wiped of anything and everything Medical and those skills replaced with baking skills. Who needs another medical personnel hanging around? In these parts, a Baker is a highly sought after household placement! There's a family who is waiting for their new personal baker to be delivered to their house in the next six to eight years. That's how long it will take to thoroughly and completely train you as a baker the right way.  
  
**Elliott thinks to himself** : _So THAT'S why he's going through all this trouble! He's re-training me to become a private family baker! Why in the world would he choose me of all people? Why not Pierre and Madeline or Lance and Meimi? They're Pastry Chefs of the highest caliber, I went nowhere near a cooking school or pastry school for that matter! I went to Med School and graduated at the top of all my classes!_

_**Meanwhile Outside** _

**Chester, Diesel, Austin, Teddy, Teagan, Sierra, Maddie, Toby, and Willow arrived at the side door**  
  
**Chester helps Austin sit in the wicker chair on the right while Diesel helped Teddy sat in the one on the left saying:** Here sit, rest and drink as much water as you can. **(Pulls out the ice cold water thermoses saying)** Ice cold water will make you feel better.  
  
**Teddy takes the thermos filled with cold water from Chester's hand, unscrews the cap and takes a long drink, then reaches into her coat pocket for her pill bottle that she took out, removed the cap and shook out all the pills that she popped into her mouth and swallowed with the water saying: There, that's lunch hour's pills gone and a nice long nap is needed as these are strong enough to make me sleepy.**  
  
**Austin reaches into her coat pocket, pulls out her bottle of chest decongestant cough syrup, removes the sandwich bag with the dosing cap in it then opens the bag removing the dosing cup, sets it on the table in front of her, then opens the bottle of cough syrup, pours out four table spoons into the dosing cup, screws the lid back on the bottle and slips it back into her coat pocket, picks up the dosing cup and drains the cough syrup putting the cup back into the sandwich bag that went back into her side coat pocket then opens her thermos and takes a long drink then screws the lid back on saying:** That stuff is going to start kicking in any time now and I'll start dozing.  
  
**Breakshaft:** We'd best get this show on the road before it's too late for Elliott and he's taken to his classes to forcefully learn how to be a professional home baker. Since Sierra and Teddy are on the verge of passing out, why don't you pick them up and hold on to them so they can both fall asleep? The rest of you, get going back to the camper, it'll be easier on your dad if he just has your two sick sisters to deal with. **(Watches as Teagan and Austin left with the other group)**  
  
**Chester sweeps Sierra up into his arms while Diesel swept up Teddy as Breakshaft ran up to the door and rings the bell**

**Meanwhile back in the study**

**Leon hears the side door doorbell ring and says:** Here we go again with people hounding me to buy things I don't want or need. **(Disappears out the sliding glass doors behind him to greet the person ringing the bell saying)** So sorry to keep you waiting! There's a delay from the moment you push the bell to when it chimes in the study. What can I do for you? **(Spies the two very sick girls and says alarmed)** Oh, my good heavens! What happened?  
  
**Breakshaft:** Our students became very sick on our winter hiking trip and the two my colleagues are holding just passed out. All our cell phone batteries are dead so we have no way to call anyone for help. Please, if you know of anyone with medical training who could care for them until we can get the battery of our camper we left at the campground to start, we'd be extremely grateful. They've got skyrocketing fevers, terrible coughs and no strength to stand or move on their own.  
  
**Leon:** Go around to the back bedroom and let yourselves inside while I find the house doctor. Just follow that dog to the back bedroom, it seems to know where to go. **(Steps back inside shutting the door behind him and heads back to the den)**  
  
**Chester follows the dog around back and watches as Diesel opened the sliding glass doors saying to Exhaust:** What a lovely rotten job you're doing  
  
**Exhaust:** Thanks, I have no intentions of changing this door for a plate glass window with four medium-sized windows for air. I can make it appear like it was changed but it's still a sliding glass door.  
  
**Chester and Diesel both step into Elliott's bedroom,heading right over to the bed where they each laid their sleeping charge down on the bed removing their bags that he sat on the chair as Breakshaft went into the en-suite to find two dry washcloths that he folded over and got wet with cold water, brought them out and laid one on Sierra's fevered forehead and one on Teddy's forehead saying:** How's that feel?  
  
**Sierra exhausted:** A bit better. You'd better get out of here before he figures things out. **(Falls back asleep grateful for the cold cloth on her head while the others situated themselves)**  
  
**Breakshaft quickly removes Sierra and Teddy's boots and eyeglasses putting them in their respective cases and setting them on the nightstand beside the bed then puts their boots on the boot mat beside the sliding glass doors as not to cause a slippery mess on the floor then, Diesel, Breakshaft and Chester bolted out the sliding glass door as Chester shut it behind him leaving the girls behind knowing they'd be well taken care of.**

  
**Meanwhile back in the study**

  
**Leon steps back inside and hurriedly goes over to where Elliott sat and hisses at him:** It's your bloody lucky day! You won't get punished for using your medical knowledge this time around as I'm removing your collar and bracelets!  
  
**Elliott thinks to himself:** _What is going on? Why is he removing the collar and bracelets? Letting me use my medical knowledge without punishment?! For what? Is he letting me go home?_  
  
**Leon reaches into his pants pocket, pulls out a key that he inserted into the keyhole on the back of Elliott's collar then removes it and unties his wrists from the back of the chair sticking the key into the keyhole unlocking first the left then the right bracelet saying:** There's visitors in your room that need dire medical attention that I'm allowing you to give to them. **(Removes the gag from Elliott's mouth saying)** If you can feel your way down here, you can get yourself back to your room! It's the same path. But first, you'll be needing something I had taken from you years ago! **(Heads to the far wall of the study, moves a portrait, unlocks a safe and pulls out Elliott's medical bag,med ward clothes and boots saying)Take this and go help those visitors in your room! Change your clothes to make a better impression! (Pulls a candle stick down and disappears behind the wall leaving Elliott to change his clothes in the darkened den)**  
  
**Elliott stands up rubbing his wrists takes his black bag and clothes,sets the bag down on the table and quickly changes out of the sailor shirt,jeans and black dress shoes into his military med ward clothes and boots then grabs his bag and bolts out of the study back towards his room where he opened the door to find his bed occupied by two familiar people as he shut the door behind him and bolted to the bed, where he immediately sat down saying:** Sierra?! Teddy?! **(Removes the damp cloth from Sierra's forehead, sets it on the nightstand then dries off her forehead and lays his hand under Sierra's bangs saying)** Oh, Sierra,you're fevered! **(Removes the cool cloth from Teddy's forehead, dries it off and lays his hand across it saying)** You're fevered as well Teddy! Who brought you here?! What're you two doing here?! It doesn't matter! How high are these fevers? (Rummages in his bag and pulls out two fever thermometers one Hello Kitty and one Panda topped thermometer that he turned on then slipped the Hello Kitty topped thermometer under Sierra's tongue and the panda Thermometer under Teddy's tongue then waited until they beeped then removed it to read the numbers muttering with a sigh) Oh, Sierra! This is too high! A hundred and eleven is too high! C'mon Teddy, let's see how high your fever is. (Looks at the Thermometer he took from Teddy's mouth and says) One ten still too high, let's get these jackets off of you! Work with me hon. **(Gently leans Teddy forward and begins to remove her jacket that he set at the foot of the bed to reveal a short-sleeved shirt underneath as he says with a sigh)** Oh, thank the stars you're wearing cooler shirts! **(Lays Teddy back against her pillows, then gets up and goes around to the other side of the bed, slips his left arm under Sierra's shoulders then leans her forward helping her remove her winter jacket that he lays on the foot of the bed then lays her back notices an empty pill bottle sticking out of Sierra's jacket pocket and a sandwich bag poking out of Teddy's pocket, picks them up and says)** Oh thank the stars you're still taking your medication Sierra! What's this stuff you're taking Teddy? **(Opens the sandwich bag and pulls out the decongestant cough syrup and reads the directions saying)** Four tablespoons four times a day? You have a chest cold don't you? **(Notices a fresh line at the four tablespoon mark and says)** Looks like you both took your lunchtime medicine so then the next dose is at supper and bedtime! **(Hears the food trolley being brought in,the door being shut and locked, gets up, goes over to it, picks up two tall glasses of ice water and carries them back over to the bed where he sat back down saying)** Sierra,Teddy, c'mon I want you to drink these entire glasses of water. It'll cool down your insides and start to lower your fevers. **(Watches as Sierra sat up then handed her the first glass then slips his left arm under Teddy's shoulders lifting her up until she leaned against his chest as he lifted the glass to her mouth)**  
  
**Teddy manages to open her blurry eyes only to wish she hadn't and begins drinking the cold water silently thanking the stars for the cold water until it was all gone and the glass was empty**  
  
**Elliott lays Teddy back against the pillows setting the tall empty glass down and begins rummaging in his black bag until he found a fresh bottle of fever reducer with dosing spoon that he twisted open then picks up the dosing spoon filling it to the two tablespoon mark saying in a soothing voice:** C'mon girls, time for your medicine. **(Slips his arm under Teddy's shoulders and lifts her forward saying** ) Teddy here's your four tablespoons of chest decongestant now and four more tablespoons later. (Lifts the dosing spoon to Teddy's mouth and dumped the contents into her mouth watching as she swallowed as he said) Can you open your eyes at all?  
  
**Teddy tries once again to open her blurry eyes only to close them**  
  
**Elliott gets up off the bed, goes over to the window and closes the curtains to drown out the light from the setting sun then goes back to the bed stopping at the chair where he found Sierra's bag, opens it to pull out light weight night clothes, fresh under clothes, slippers, medication, folders of make up work from school and a bathrobe then sits beside S** **ierra saying:** It's time to get into your night clothes, but first I'm going to run you a cool bath to cool you down. I'll help you get out of your clothes and into your bathrobe for your bath. C'mon. **(Lowers the blankets from around Teddy and Sierra, helping Sierra to sit up then slowly swings her legs over the edge of the bed and says)** Teddy, I'll be right back! I'm going to the en suite to start and run Sierra a cool bath! Then after she's had her bath, you can head in and have yourself a cool shower. **(Heads into the en-suite where he puts the plug into the tub and fills it with cool water until it was just below the overflow drain then heads back out into the bedroom where he said to Sierra)** C'mon, bath time. **(Helps Sierra stand up and walk to the bathroom where he says)** Take your dirty clothes off and leave them on the floor, then hop into the tub and cool down, wash your hair then after you're done, thoroughly dry off! I don't need you any sicker than what you already are! You do have clean clothes right?  
  
**Sierra faintly:** Alright, yeah in the satchel. **(heads into the bathroom shutting the door behind her)**

**Fifteen minutes later**

  
**Sierra emerges from her cool bath in her night clothes and slowly made her way to the bed where she laid down**  
  
**Elliott:** Feeling any cooler?  
  
**Sierra faintly:** A bit  
  
**Elliott:** Bit by bit I'll get your fever down to where you can sleep comfortably. By the way, how're your memories coming along? Anything new come back to you? **(Watches as**  
**Teddy made her way to the bathroom for her bath then says)**  What time is Domino coming?  
  
**Sierra puts her head down and closes her eyes as yet another dizzy spell started and says:** Round about midnight, I'll slip out to the side of the road and finish arranging things. Whooo the world is spinning again.  
  
**Elliott:** Take it easy,breathe in and slowly breathe out. Where's your glucometer?! Never mind I know where it is. **(Reaches into the bag on the floor and pulls out Sierra's glucometer, unzips the case,pops open the test strips,shakes one out,inserts it into the top of the glucometer then pulls out the lancet,sets up a new needle then takes hold of Sierra's hand pressing the lancet to the middle of her finger then presses the release button plunging the needle into her finger drawing a pinprick of blood,sets the lancet aside and slides the test strip through the drop of blood and waits for the reading saying)** No wonder you think the world is spinning! Your sugars need to come up! A blood count of three is low by anyone's standards! **(Stands up and heads over to the trolley where he grabs a chocolate eclair saying)** Eat this then we'll check your blood again!  
  
**Sierra takes the eclaire and begins to eat it saying between bites:** Domino will be here tonight after midnight when they leave for that stupid party in town.  
  
**Elliott continues the disguised conversation remembering the surveillance cameras recorded not only footage but sound and says:** I want you to get some rest and let your medication work. After you've worked things out with Cobalt and Hunter, they'll be shipping you home to Arsis base to check in with your own family. This may very well be the last time we see and speak, we live on very different bases and my world will be in utter chaos when I return to work, on top of it all, I've been slated for surgery for quite sometime and the opportunity has come up for me to have surgery. I won't be working for a good six to eight months and I don't expect any phone calls while I'm recovering. I just want to be left alone to recover in peace.  
  
**Sierra lays back down and falls back asleep**

  
**Ten Minutes later**

 **Teddy comes out of the bathroom dressed in her night clothes and slowly makes her way out of the bathroom feeling as her energy started waning**  
  
**Elliott looks up to see Teddy leaning heavily on the bathroom door frame and hurries over to her saying:** C'mon Teddy, easy does it! Go slow, don't rush the bed's not going anywhere anytime soon. **(Helps a very tired Teddy over to the bed saying)** Into bed **(Watches as Teddy slowly climbed into bed then covered her up with the blanket then hears their stomachs growl and says)** Hungry for whatever they gave me for supper?  
  
**Teddy closes her eyes and falls into a comfortably cool sleep preferring to ignore her stomach in favor of the call of sleep.**  
  
**Elliott heads over to his food wagon and pushes it over to the bed lifting the dome saying:** Looks like we've got some hot chicken soup for your colds **(Looks over at the bed and notices the two girls had fallen asleep, heaves a sigh thinking to himself)** _I may as well eat by myself seeing as the two of you have gone to sleep._ **(Sets the dome back down over the food and helps himself to the whole wheat ham and cheese sandwiches, a salad with thousand islands dressing,a glass of water,a cup of coffee and a glass of water that he set aside then went over to Teddy's side of the bed and brought out the spare tray that he took back over to the food tray where he put his supper on it and carried it over to the desk where he sat it down then noticed the bags on the chair one of which had Teagan's embroidery on it and thinks)** _Teddy or Sierra must've grabbed the wrong bag! What's in here anyways?_ **(Unzips the zipper,opens the bag and pulls out a red medicine bag that he sat aside then pulls out several folders with Teddy and Sierra written on them,sits the bag on the floor then sits on the chair to begin leafing through Sierra and Teddy's homework folders thinking)** _Hmm Teddy's mostly got AP History,AP Calculus,AP Geography AP Trig and what's this one? Oh English a book report on the book she's been reading._ **(Sets Teddy's homework files aside and leafs through Sierra's work thinking)** _I warned her not to fall too far behind in her homework and she's fallen way behind in what?_ **(Leafs through the papers in the file folder thinking) What is all this? I don't recognize any of it. (Closes the folder and read the subject thinking)** O _h Creative Writing, no wonder I didn't recognize it. They're thought flow charts she's using to plan the next book. Hmm what's this next subject? Advanced Honor's Calculus? No, Algebra she hasn't lost her knack for math after being out sick for so long._ **(Notices a letter in a red file and pulls it out to read it)** _Teddy's ready for high school grad already?! She just started ninth grade and they're ready to graduate her from high school?! Due to Teddy,Teagan and Austin taking their required courses for tenth to twelfth grade over the holidays at the accelerated level, all three girls have qualified for early Graduation?! Whoa I have three girls ready for High School Graduation already? Where did time go? It feels like only yesterday they were having tantrums brought on by hunger and tiredness, now they're ready for High School Graduation! Wait what're these?_ **(Notices several tickets in an envelope and pulls out the contents thinking)** _Academic Awards Ceremony Tickets bleh, Racer won't go, he hates these things. **(Notices pictures of the four girls and thinks)** WOW, Sierra made their dresses already?!_ **(Hears the bed shift and looks over and remembering the surveillance cameras says)** Sierra, you alright?  
  
**Sierra faintly:** I'll be alright. May as well get used to taking care of myself again. No one else is going to do it for me. (Flings back the covers,swings her body around putting her feet on the floor then carefully stood up and walked to the washroom, closed the door and came back out a few minutes later slowly making her way back to the bed all the while thinking) I'll take off the minute the headlights on the idiot's van are out of sight, by then Domino should arrive discreetly with the camper or one of my buses. **(Slides back under the covers and lays on her side facing the window setting her watch alarm to vibrate at exactly eleven thirty then lays down falling asleep)**  
  
**Elliott hears a side door open,stand up and heads in the direction of the sound of an opening door thinking:** _What was that noise?_ **(Reaches out and opens a door and steps into a spare bedroom thinking)** _At least I have somewhere to sleep tonight! The girls can have the main bedroom and I'll sleep in here!_ **(Closes the door and heads into the bedroom to get ready to leave after midnight)**

**11:30 P.M.**

**Sierra feels her watch vibrating,turns off the alarm,sits up,gets up out of bed,walks over to the desk, picks up her bag,pulls off her night shirt,stuffs it inside,grabs her winter jacket, slips it on then stuffs her feet into her winter boots feeling as they hugged her feet tightly then slips on her bag thinking:** Well it's time! I best let Elliott know I'm heading out **(Pulls out her cell phone, opens her contacts,double taps Domino's name and allows the line to trill three times before saying)** I'm ready when you are. Back side road? I'll be there shortly. Yeah I know I sound horrible,I've caught a miserable head cold. Alright I'm on my way out the door now to be at the side of the road. The bus on it's way? One thirty? I'll tell him, should I wake Teddy up, she's caught the same bug I have. Alright then, I'll wake her. **(Hangs up and puts her cell phone back into her coat pocket, heads to the bed and gently shakes Teddy saying)** C'mon rise and shine, Domino's on his way to the side of the road. The idiots have gone four towns over to the annual get as smashed as you plausibly can party.  
  
**Teddy wakes up and says:** Whoo-ohh man stop the planet I want off. What about the camper?  
  
**Sierra heaves a sigh saying:** It's not coming until one thirty-two. The damned Police stopped it and are carrying out a full inspection. We'll be leaving in Domino's Limo that has a false bottom in case the Police stop him we can hide under the floor boards out of sight.  
  
**Teddy:** A full inspection? For Pete's sake! It's a brand new camper that was bought and paid for by my mother's brother,it's registered to uncle Lorne what's the big deal?!  
  
**Sierra:** That's small town police for you, they see a huge ass camper come down their town streets and they get suspicious.  
  
**Teddy flings back the covers of the bed,carefully stands up and proceeds to change out of her night clothes**  
  
**Sierra grabs Teddy's shoes off the door mat and hands them to her saying:** Your boots  
  
**Teddy pulls up her socks and takes her boots from Sierra's hands putting them down on the floor and stuffing her feet into them saying:** Just need my jacket which uncle Elliott put on the coat rack after he took it off me.  
  
**Sierra grabs the two jackets off the coat rack handing Teddy's to her saying:** Got everything?  
  
**Teddy heads over to the desk and puts all her school work into her bag and zips it shut slipping her arms through the shoulder straps saying:** Let's go. We should let him know we're going right?  
  
**Sierra heads over to the door,knocks on it then opens it sticking her head in saying:** Start and get ready, my bus will be here as soon as we check in with Domino. The campers been detained by the town police. Teddy and I are heading out now.  
  
**Elliott looks up from his book and says:** I'm ready to go. Like I said, I don't have much of anything here. I read the books that were on the bookshelf.  
  
**Sierra pulls out her cell phone and calls Domino back saying:** Should we bring him with us instead?  
  
**Domino:** If he's ready and has nothing to leave behind then by all means bring Elliott with you. There's a winter jacket in the closet of the room he's in for him to wear. I've got all his medications with me so he doesn't have to worry about forgetting his medication.  
  
**Sierra hangs up and says:** There's a winter jacket in the closet for you to put on. Just grab your black bag and let's go. We'll slip out the sliding glass doors in here. (Watches as  
  
**Elliott simply reached up and unfastened the collar from his neck then went over to the closet door, opened it,pulled out a brand new winter jacket that he slipped on and done up then grabbed his black bag,headed to the bedroom door then over to the sliding glass doors, slides the outer door open quietly,slips out and shuts it behind her then turns and runs up the path,turns right and heads directly to the back side road that was out of view of the back bedrooms arriving just in time for Domino's Limo to pull up**  
  
**Domino gets out of the Limo and embraces Sierra saying in his thick British Voice:** I have been worried sick about you! (Releases Sierra saying) Dustin's also been worried sick about you!  
  
**Sierra:** I know, I'm so sorry for worrying everyone. Hadn't anticipated this taking so long.  
  
**Domino:** C'mon, get in the car, both you and Teddy are sick. Elliott did they hurt you in anyway?  
  
**Elliott heaves a sigh saying:** No, just used a shock collar on me to make me toe the line. Other than that they were trying to retrain me to be a baker. I can cook, I can bake they just made me a better cook and baker. The skills were already there, they just needed to be upgraded so I let them think that I was actually forgetting how to be a doctor.  
  
**Domino spies headlights coming from the opposite direction and says:** Quick get in the car! They're coming back! **(Watches as Elliott quickly slid into the limo then got in himself saying)** Everyone down! Lift up the false bottom there's plenty of space down there to stand up. **(Watches as Sierra lifted the false floor and slid into the hidden compartment followed by Teddy and Elliott then closed the false floor listening as Domino said)** Oh so sorry, my driver's lost the main road and decided to pull off here to see if he could realign the GPS with the Satellite.  
  
**Ethan after pretending to fiddle with the GPS says:** Ahh there we go! I found the road again boss. We can get going again!  
  
**Domino:** Great let's get going then before the weather closes in on us. **(Watches as the car ahead of them continued up the road then says)** Gearshift get us the hell out of here before it's too late. There has to be a quicker road out of here.  
  
**Gearshift glances at the GPS and says:** Yep the road off to the right loops back to where we pulled off and continues into the forest. **(Takes the limo out of park and follows his GPS until they were back on the main road heading towards their destination)**  
  
**Domino bangs on the floor board with his foot saying:** All clear c'mon up.  
  
**Teddy slides the door to the right opening the hatch again and comes up saying:** Good thing they believed Gearshift when he said he'd found the signal again.  
  
**Sierra follows Teddy out of the hidden compartment saying:** All he did was take it offline then restart the hidden program that was running in the background to make it look like the GPS System had malfunctioned. **(Takes the seat next to Domino,fastens her seat belt and says)** Has the rest of that file been decorrupted yet?  
  
**Domino hiccups then belches,reaches beside him,pulls out his satchel,unzips the zipper and pulls out a binder saying:** Whoo excuse me, been waiting for that to happen. Yes the last of that corrupted file has been uncorrupted Sierra. It was finished this afternoon by my computer team. Oh man I'm starving! The food that was served during my meetings wasn't worth getting there early for, matter of fact, none of it was all that tempting. **(Opens his restaurant search engine saying)** There has to be somewhere I can get something filling to eat at this hour of the night other than the garbage that was served for lunch that is currently upsetting my stomach. Damned knock off Chinese food has my stomach in an uproar.  
  
**Sierra:** The only place I can think of off the top of my head would be Trendy's Drive-Thru that's open until three **(tips her wrist to look at her watch then pulls out an old receipt and says) It's still open for awhile longer and it's just up the road a few miles. (Circles the address on the receipt and says)** Here's the address for Gage to input in the GPS oh wait! There's also MUSHU'S, the Bamboo bowl is delicious! It's closer than Trendy's and a boatload cheaper and healthier  
  
**Domino pulls out his cell phone, opens messenger scans the QR Code and sends it to Gage saying:** We've changed course thank the stars. I can't think straight anymore. What's in the Bamboo Bowl anyway?  
  
**Sierra:** brown rice, broccoli, carrots, cabbage, coconut, mushrooms, cilantro, lime wedge, green curry sauce. You can customize it to your liking.  
  
**Domino hears his stomach growl and says:** Right now that bamboo bowl sounds delicious the way it is!  
  
**A few hours later the limo pulled up to the only open late Mushu's and pulled into a parking spot**  
  
**Gage puts the limo into park, shuts off the engine gets out of the limo and opens Sierra's door saying:** We're here! Time for some decent food for a change.  
  
**Sierra steps out of the Limo saying:** At least the rice is soft enough for me to swallow  
  
**Domino:** Eat what you can eat and don't force yourself to eat more than your stomach can handle. **(heads towards the entrance of the restaurant and opens the door for**  
**everyone else to enter then heads up to the counter and orders five bamboo bowls allowing everyone to grab a drink then customize their own bowl to their likings and pays for the order giving the server Sierra's name making a simple request for each bowl to have a name on the lid to avoid confusion and goes off to the washroom leaving Sierra to pick up the orders and take it to the table allowing everyone to take their own customized and personalized bowls off the trays and returns a few minutes later saying)** Never again will I eat knock off leftover Chinese food with vegan pastries. The last of it just came up. I'll just have Celeste make me a big meal to take with me so that I don't have to eat whatever crap the cheap ass hosts decide to go with to 'save money'  
  
**Sierra:** Now you know why I don't eat when I'm on set or on location for a photo shoot. I don't trust the catering companies, on top of that I have severe dietary restrictions.  
  
**Elliott skeptically:** Dietary Restrictions? You of all people have dietary restrictions? What kind of Dietary Restrictions could you possibly have that prevents you from eating?  
  
**Sierra:** Oh I don't know how about Celiac Disease? Food Allergies to certain foods, an extremely acidic stomach. I can't eat yellow peppers,onions,tomatoes, no rye,no wheat, no barley, Ginger Ale barely brings up the gas in my stomach that I was born with, my blood is thick as hell which makes getting blood out of me very difficult, my urine smells horrible like rotten eggs, I have infrequent insomnia, I can't eat eggs hard boiled,over easy,sunny side up or scrambled they make my stomach lurch and I'll either be sitting on the toilet or hunched over puking my guts out. I have crippling migraines that not even the strongest migraine pills work on. If you still don't believe me, my dad has an entire website devoted to me with pages detailing everything that goes on with day by day accounts of everything done and the results. **(Pulls out her cell phone, taps on the icon for her personal website allows it to load then says)** Here's the website my dad made, it comes built with it's own app to launch it.  
  
**Elliott takes Sierra's phone and reads through the web pages saying:** How the hell are you even alive with everything wrong with you?!  
  
**Domino:** I ensure she's taken care of when on location and on set. I'm the one that ensures that food brought in by Catering Companies goes through rigorous screening and isn't cross contaminated and is safe enough for Sierra to eat. I only use Catering Companies that are 100% Certified Organic and peanut free. Nothing gets on set or on location that isn't from a Certified Organic Catering Company. Too many Actors and Models have the same stomach problems Sierra has. All those scenes that are shot in Hospitals where Sierra's character's either out cold or in a coma are shot during the times when Sierra was battling a virus.  
  
**Elliott:** What about eating,bathing and bathroom breaks?  
  
**Sierra:** In between takes I get up and go.  
  
**Elliott remembers the faded picture he kept in his wallet,reaches into his pants pocket to pull out his wallet from which he pulled out the picture shows it to Sierra and says in annoyance:** Care to explain how you know my brother Racer?!  
  
**Domino looks at the picture and notes the date saying:** Same tour circuit that year, Racer was kind enough to shelter Sierra's band when her bus caught fire and was destroyed. No one was injured,no instruments were destroyed as they were set up and waiting at the next stop for that day's concert and no one lost anything. They all got off the bus with their coats and bags before the engine fire got worse. I never thought that I'd get a phone call stating there was a school bus completely engulfed in flames on the side of a road never the less in the middle of the night. That was the last year they used a School Bus as a Tour Bus as that's the year I started funding the tours with strict rules and conditions that were to be met and high expectations for cleanliness of the bus and they were to expect me to pop up anywhere to inspect the cleanliness and condition of the bus. If anything was broken and not made note of in the incident report,would come out of their pocket money, if the bus was a total pig sty, I'd ensure they got to cleaning it to my standards. I don't loan out an expensive bus in brand new mint clean condition and expect to see it filthy and damaged beyond repair. The only ones who knew when I would be popping up were my son and Sierra's dad which meant Sierra had advance knowledge of my inspections. I've had no problems with the condition, sanitation or cleanliness of the bus. Every time I spontaneously boarded at a pit stop for inspection, the bus was clean, the kitchen as small as it is, has always been sanitized after being given a thorough scrubbing. The beds were always made unless someone was sick and in it resting with the curtains closed, I left things alone. Racer has the same standards for cleanliness as I do,Sierra and her band respected Racer's bus and his rules. If a mess was made, it was cleaned up to your brother's exacting standards, they did as they were told to do and life for Racer and his band was made a whole lot easier. When Racer and his band were on the stage, Sierra and her band were making supper for after the concert. Though from what I've been told, there were a few mistakes made that almost landed Digger in the ICU getting his stomach pumped and his system flushed. Racer was nice enough not to get upset at the mistakes, how could he? It was in his words 'my own stupid fault for locking the bus and not leaving the keys with someone so you could get back on to get the meal charts and make a safe meal for everyone to enjoy. We'll chalk this up to my stupidity and we won't say a word about this to anyone! For now, let's just dispose of Digger's portion and he'll just call out for a Bamboo Bowl.'  
  
**Sierra looks out the window saying:** None of us knew Digger was deathly allergic to yellow and orange peppers or to kale, or to half the veggies we put in the stew nor did we know that he was a strict vegan, no animal products ever went into his meals. The bus was locked so we didn't have access to the meal charts so when we were told to start making supper and were shown the kitchen with all the food, we started prepping. No one we asked had the keys to unlock the bus so we could board and get the information we needed to make a supper that was safe for everyone to eat, it's not like we could have gone and asked Racer for the keys, he was on stage and we had strict instructions to stay away from the stage even between sets. The fourth time it happened again. Racer was so psyched to get out on stage for the first set, he forgot to leave the keys to the bus for us to get on board again as he still hadn't made copies of the meal charts for us to reference and no one else had a spare set of keys to give us to unlock the bus. However this time I decided to play it safe and make a buffet style meal where everyone could get their own food. Nothing came into contact with anything else, everything was kept in separate chafing dishes, there was a heated meat table for meat lovers, a pasta table, a steamed veggie table complete with all kinds of rice, there was a bread table and a cold cuts table for those who wished to have a sandwich. This time Racer lost it completely, he was beyond thrilled to see he could pick and choose what he wanted to eat. The Corporate Sponsors for my band were pissed off. So they deducted a chunk of money the size of a giant Panda from our food budget to pay for the 'overage' that was created from us being fed and looked after by Racer and his band. What could we do? We didn't buy the food, it was just dropped off and the buffet and chafing tables were already there and set up. We just made what was on the menu for that night not expecting to get into any trouble. When he found out what corporate was doing, he put an end to it and fast. At the time I didn't have any way to get in touch with anyone, my cell phone,tablet,laptop and iPad were all taken away by my dad when he heard that my math grade dipped to a C-. He assumed that I was spending too much time on my novels to be bothered doing my homework and took everything away causing my grades to dip even further because homework,assignments,tests and some projects were put up online for when the teachers couldn't be in class to teach. One day he logged into my laptop-the red one-to see what I'd been 'wasting my time on' only to find my email inbox was filled with messages from teachers asking where my assignments and tests were so they could run them through the marking program and log my grade. (Heaves a sigh saying) Imagine him trying to explain to the teachers that he had imposed an indefinite technology ban on me because he had been told that my math grade was a C-, my English-Lit grade was a D+, my History mark a C+, my Geography grade a miserable D-,my Art grade was the only shining star at an A+, my Chem grade was a C+,my Algebra grade was so low it couldn't be recorded,my Calculus grad was a D- and my attendance for all my classes was in the basement and I was a severe disciplinary problem and a distraction to the teachers and my classmates. My teachers had no idea what the hell he was talking about, they hadn't even turned in any marks yet because it wasn't time for the end of term grades to be turned in yet, there was still three weeks to go before they needed to get the marks in and dad was making it very difficult for me to get my work done and turned in with his indefinite technology ban. He finally relented and when I got off the road, he let me have everything back never admitting he was wrong about my grades. From what I was told, one of the roadies called Domino about Corporate being angry over a shipment of food needed to make supper and about them taking money from my band to pay for what they considered stolen food money.  
  
**Domino:** I sorted it out, the bill was already paid in advance and no one from Sierra's band signed for the shipment of food. It was already done. As usual they wouldn't listen and had already taken the money out of their food budget. Not that it mattered, Racer's food budget was big enough to include twelve extra mouths to feed.  
  
**Sierra:** Racer locked himself in his office on the bus with the accountant for his band and went over every single credit card statement with a fine tooth comb starting from the day he took us on board his bus looking for anything out of the ordinary and came up with several deductions that made no sense. A hundred and fifty dollar deduction for stopping at a rest stop to use the washroom? Six hundred dollars for eating at Mushu's instead of Cluney's? Seriously? Yet he just couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong, that money was misappropriated and he was determined to find out who took money from what budget and where it went. He was in his office all night and the entirety of the next day, he only came out for band practice during the afternoon and during that time, my band and I stayed away from him. He came to us that night and told us we were owed millions in reimbursements in money Corporate was taking in the form of unnecessary deductions. He was in the process of fighting Corporate to get that money back when he vanished. There were restaurants near by within walking distance of the venue that were cheap enough for us where we went to eat our lunch and supper. We always made it back before Racer's midnight curfew, the shops were always closed by eight thirty nine at night so we always got back to the bus by at least a quarter past nine with plenty of time to shower, put our night clothes on and get into bed so we wouldn't miss Drain The Oceans at ten on Tuesday nights. Wednesday nights it was either game night or movie night that spilled over into Thursday night, on Fridays and Saturdays the shops closed at nine thirty ten and we always got back by quarter to ten still with plenty of time for a shower and to get into our night clothes and into our bunks to be out of Racer's way. We kept our area tidy and lived out of our back packs and suit cases,clean laundry came out of our suit cases and dirty laundry went into our duffel bags to be sent home to be washed. We were told by Sanddune our Sponsor that we were not to be a burden on Racer's Financial situation so often time we went to sandwich shops for supper or to the donut store since it was super cheap. That was until someone from his entourage spotted us in a coffee shop eating sandwiches and chili with pop and water to drink then went and told Racer about where we were eating. What else could we do? We only had enough money left over after Corporate deducted what they wanted from our food budget to eat at a Coffee Shop or a sandwich shop or the donut store or the Olde Time Diner that had everything priced the way it was in the fifties. Monday nights are wrestling if something else more interesting isn't on, Sunday's we usually sit and do paint by numbers  
  
**Elliott:** At a quarter after ten, Racer would be heading into his last four songs. His concerts never went past eleven, they started on time and ended either on time or a bit early. His last email stated he was confused as to why supper wasn't ready when he and the band left the stage and went back to the eating area, he stated that the only things he and the band found were pre-made sandwiches made an hour before the last set finished. He said he wandered a bit before he found where you had the buffet station set up.

 **Sierra** : Oh yeah, we found a bigger wider spot to set up the buffet tables,the grill,the drinks tables,the condiment tables,dessert tables and the eating area. The first space that was found wouldn't have worked, it was directly under an active Wasps nest so we moved further out into the open field and that's where we set everything up including putting up signs pointing to where we were located.  
  
**Elliott:** Oh my lord, who sets up a food station under an active Wasps Nest?! That's not only stupid but very dangerous for Tracker! He's deathly allergic to a Wasp Sting  
  
**Sierra:** The second place the stager picked out was right on top of a fire ant mound, strike three for this idiot was right under a bees nest. After that Dorian took over and found us a spot with plenty of space to set up the buffet tables, the steam table,the ice table,dessert and drinks tables and the picnic benches. Unloading all that took about an hour, setting up the grill took Gearshift not even two minutes where the last stop it took Spotlight an hour to get it up and going, the ice bin was set up filled to the brim with ice by the time the concert was on it's last legs everything was set up and ready for the band to come off stage and have their supper.  
Elliott: Wait, their supper? What about your band's supper?  
  
**Sierra laughs saying:** Oh by the time Racer's concert's over, we had already eaten our fill of food, ditched our disposable plates,recycled our pop cans, went back to the bus, hit the showers and were usually in bed sleeping by the time Racer's band gets to eat. The breakdown of everything is left up to those who did the set up to start with, we were usually tired from being up at the crack of dawn, we had online school work to get done plus we had our own rehearsals to get started and those took us up to the time Racer said it was time to stop and eat. Trust me when I say Breakwire's never thrilled when someone says he has to stop.  
  
**Elliott:** You HAVE to stop and eat and for some of you take medication with food. He does a package of twenty four songs and that's it no more no less. So that's why he stated he felt bad for 'the horrendous mistake corporate headquarters made'. They wrongfully took money out of your band's meal budget to cover the quick pit stop at a bulk food store you made to stock up on food which should always fall under grocery money. Racer also stated that Rearview found the invoice for that meal and showed it to him after corporate headquarters had taken a large chunk of money out of your budget to cover miscellaneous expenses whatever the hell they thought they were doing it was illegal and wrong. You don't deduct money for things like gas and bus maintenance, the bus's fuel should be covered under another category. Racer never did say whether or not he had replaced the money they took from your meal budget.  
  
**Sierra:** No they didn't replace it. To him there was a big problem with our budge in the fact that it didn't balance period. Some categories had more money in them then others. Like vehicle maintenance it got seven thousand dollars for fuel, to go through and get a wash, to get a quick tune up which shouldn't cost more than a few hundred bucks, Security was getting twenty two thousand per tour, the cost of the Road Crew's Hotel Bill, they stayed at five star hotels while we stayed at rooming houses, then there were the electricity bills that were constantly being handed to us to pay, we didn't handle that stuff. That's what our Accountant was hired for, turns out he was dipping into the pool and taking out more money than he was entitled to and everything else.  
  
**Elliott:** None of that makes sense to me at all.   
  
**Sierra:** On more than one occasion I have gotten severely sick on the road and had no way to call anyone because we weren't allowed to use our cell phones nor were we allowed to bring in outside help or go to any sort of walk-in clinic or hospital. If we did our Health Care Budget got slashed big time to pay the bill. Most of the time someone who knew how to get in touch with my dad and my uncle, got in touch with them and told them we were touring on a filthy bus sick as dogs not being permitted by the Touring Department or Corporate Headquarters to seek out Medical Help.  
  
**Teddy:** Seriously? They made you suffer through illness to save money?  
  
**Sierra:** Yeah, they didn't care. Three tours into our first year we ate at Mickie's Diner and got really sick with a bad case of Food Poisoning. We were puking all night and all day long, running fevers of over a hundred with chills, splitting headaches,stomach cramps that made menstrual cramps look like muscle twinges.  
  
**Teddy:** Your kidding me! That's awful  
  
**Sierra heaves a sigh,closes her eyes and says:** Yeah, my uncle Terrence wasn't too happy about what he was hearing so he went right above Corporate's head to their boss who canceled the rest of the tour, yanked the bus off the road and had it inspected. Let's just say it got a red flag and was failed big time. That's why I'm on so many different pills, the food poisoning go untreated for so long that it morphed into a really hard to shake infection for six of us. The Orange pills you see me breaking in half to take are what I'm taking to combat the infection that's still hanging around. The first part is almost gone, it's the second part that's taking it's sweet time leaving.

 **Teddy:** You know those commercials for the donut store where the kid says  **'Can I join the Circus?', 'Can I have a baby brother?'**

 **Sierra:** Yes, where are you going with this? Would I ask either of my parents for a younger sibling?

 **Teddy:** Would you?

 **Sierra:** Why would I? I have a twin brother: Axel,two sisters:Bridgette and Noelle and twin brothers: Nathan and Nicholas and twin sisters all four are now three and are reading three grade levels above their peers,they can spell,write their own names,know what mom and dad's names are,where I was born and raised,where Bridgette and Noelle were born and raised and how to tie their own shoes and dress themselves. The kids in their Kindergarten Class can't do any of those things yet, _half_ of the kids aren't even comfortabe going to the washroom on their own without mom or dad with them, turned out mom was carrying quads, the girls weren't visible on the Ultrasounds but they were discovered just after the boys were delivered. Dad's fixed as is mom. As soon as the infection cleared up, mom had a  _complete_ Hysterectomy. No more siblings for me, no more diaper for mom and dad to change. **(Reaches into her purse and pulls out her tablet,turns it on, taps the album app and opens the family picture and says)** This is what waits for me at the end of every book release and every tour. I don't  _need_ anymore siblings thank you. And before you even go  _there_ , Axel is gay and has zero interest in girls. Never has had any and never will have any interest. He at one time  _had_ a girlfriend but she was so overly controlling, he couldn't stomach her.

 **Elliott:**  Oh good grief, by the time you hit Kindergarten you ought to know the standard very important information needed incase of an emergency. Like your home phone number, if you have them your grandparents phone number,the name and number of an emergency contact should be on a cue card stuck in a pocket of the back pack, I did it for my girls. Overly controlling? What he couldn't wear what he liked?

 **Sierra:** Nope. No jeans,no tshirts, no running shoes, no ball caps and no long hair. She literally went through his closet with a bin for donations and took out  _everything_ she didn't approve of and had it replaced with dress pants,dress shirts,dress jackets,dress shoes and dress socks. She even went through his dresser, putting all his underwear and sports uniforms in the bin saying  **'If it wasn't for me, you'd be dressing like a bum! Look at all this crap I've filled the bin with! Someone _else_ will be  _more_ than happy to have all this crap! Don't  _ever_ let me see this crap back in your closets, armoires,chests or dressers again! Please! I'll just leave these bins here and come back for them on Monday! I expect to see you wearing at least  _one_ of the suits I bought you when I return!'** That was it, she went home on Sunday and we went through his closet with Contractor Sized Garbage Bags just chucking all the clothes Sasha had bought him in them while dad hung Axel's shirts back up and put his jeans back on the shelves.

 **Domino:** What business was it of Sasha's what your brother wore while he played organized team sports? Every sports team has a set team league uniform they're required to wear: a practice uniform, a game day uniform, a travel uniform and a championship game uniform. You can't glitz up a set of uniforms because they're not to your expectations. 


End file.
